Nintendo's Switch Online service launches September 18th

Nintendo has finally revealed when its Switch Online service will be available -- and with only a few days left to go. The $20 per year subscription service will go live on September 18th (19th in Europe), with a week-long free trial available from the eShop at launch. Many of the launch details are under wraps, such as the games that will require a subscription to play, but Nintendo promises to shed more light on the subject with a Direct presentation on the 13th at 6PM Eastern.

As before, multiplayer access is only part of the picture. Nintendo is offering 20 NES games with online play, cloud-based save game backups, dedicated Switch Online apps and "special offers" for members (most likely discounts on games and add-ons). As with PlayStation Plus and Xbox Live Gold, it's ultimately about convincing gamers to pay a regular fee for internet services by offering a few perks -- Nintendo's offering is just considerably less expensive (if also less feature-packed) than its rivals.